Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Syrian Defense: We call on all parties in Sweida to cooperate with security forces and exercise restraint
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: The Lebanese Army is continuing its investigations and will later announce any information that does not affect the confidentiality of the investigation
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: It has not yet been determined whether the detainees belong to ISIS or another organization
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: Around 10 people of different nationalities, including Lebanese nationals, were detained
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: The Lebanese army arrested a number of people in the Matn area of Mount Lebanon with possession it has not disclosed
Gaza Civil Defense spokesman: We have strong indications that there are martyrs, injuries, and trapped people in the Salah al-Din area
Gaza Civil Defense spokesman: Citizens should avoid Salah al-Din Street because anyone who approaches it is at risk of being directly targeted
Gaza Civil Defense spokesman: Reality is that there is a very limited retreat of the vehicles, with the occupation forces providing cover undeer fire up to Salah al-Din Street
Gaza Civil Defense spokesman: Claims that the Israeli occupation has withdrawn from areas in the neighborhoods of al-Zaytoun, al-Tuffah, and al-Shujaiya are false
Hamas: The two delegations stressed that any negotiations must lead to the achievement of our people's goals and aspirations, foremost among which is ending the war and the complete withdrawal of enemy forces

Study to focus on reasons of infertility among recent war veterans

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Agencies
  • 24 Aug 2022 16:22
  • 1 Shares
4 Min Read

The new study seeks to find out why veterans from the US most recent wars are more likely to suffer from issues related to infertility than their civilian counterparts.

  • x
  • From a news conference about military burn pits legislation with veterans advocacy groups and Democratic members of Congress outside the US Capitol on March 29, 2022
    From a news conference about military burn pits legislation with veterans advocacy groups and Democratic members of Congress outside the US Capitol on March 29, 2022

Researchers on Tuesday announced their plans for a new study to find out why veterans from the US most recent wars are more likely to suffer from issues related to infertility than their civilian counterparts.

Officials from Legacy, a fertility clinic, will partner with the Department of Veterans Affairs for the study.

Researchers will test sperm collected from more than 1,000 veterans that participated in the onslaught of aggression in West Asia and North Africa dubbed by the United States as the "Global War on Terror" in a bid to look for common problems among the population of veterans.

For over two decades, the US waged wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, and Somalia, to name a few countries, and this not only take the lives of hundreds of thousands of civilians throughout the years of war but also saw thousands of US soldiers suffering from many issues, psychological and physical, to serve the "greater goal" of solidifying Washington's standing in the international arena.

Read next: 1/4 of US 400 wars were in Middle East, Africa - Study

The goal of the study is to use the findings to expand the fertility services the Veterans Affairs Department offers over the coming years.

"As a VA physician, I have witnessed firsthand veterans struggling with family building," Veterans Health Administration's healthcare innovation chief Dr. Ryan Vega said. "This effort is important to further understanding a tackling a challenge so many of our nation's veterans face."

Previous studies have shown that the rate of fertility among soldiers that fought in Afghanistan and Iraq could be half that of civilians for unclear reasons.

Legacy officials said they plan on studying various variables, including burn pit exposure during service, traumatic brain injury side effects, and ongoing PTSD, to see how these issues might affect the conception of a child.

Related News

Tensions ease in Sweida as all detainees released amid mediation

Fierce clashes breakout in Syria's Sweida, leading to displacement

US troops stationed overseas have long held a practice of using burn pits to get rid of their toxic waste. The items that went into the burn pits included batteries, medical waste, plastics, ammunition, even amputated body parts, rubber and chemicals.

Nearly 30,000 troops and filled out a survey on exposure to burn pits between April to December 2014, and data from the survey highlighted the health conditions experienced by US troops. 

The most commonly diagnosed health problems were insomnia and neurological problems. Other problems included allergies, high blood pressure, lung diseases like emphysema, chronic bronchitis, and asthma.

One veteran, Julie Tomaska from the Minnesota Air National Guard, who was deployed during the invasion of Iraq on twice in 2005 and 2007, was living near one of these burn pits, which was in Iraq's Balad airbase. She and her colleagues knew this could not be good for them.

Although more than 200,000 servicemembers have registered at the burn pits registry to help "better understand the potential health effects of burn pits and other exposures", the majority of the claims have so far been rejected. 

The study will focus on men only, but organizers said they hoped the findings will improve fertility services given by VA.

The researchers will collect and test sperm samples. They will then be cryogenically stored to be reanalyzed six months later in order to identify any additional issues.

The Cooperative Research and Development Agreement between VA and Legacy stipulates that the company covers the cost of cryopreservation for all study participants through December 2023, and VA will be responsible for covering the cost of any continued preservation after that date.

The findings will be released in a report in early 2024.

the fact that the study must be done shows that the US wars on "terror" did not have any beneficiaries except the officials in Washington and the conglomerates they used to exploit and loot the natural resources of the countries that were the victims of their aggression.

  • Syria
  • United States
  • Afghanistan
  • burn pits
  • Iraq
  • Somalia
  • Yemen

Most Read

Hezbollah SG reveals war details on Al Mayadeen for the first time

Hezbollah SG reveals war details on Al Mayadeen for the first time

  • Politics
  • 8 Jul 2025
Major ambush in Gaza kills 6 Israeli troops, injures dozens

Major ambush in Gaza kills 5 Israeli troops, injures 14

  • Politics
  • 8 Jul 2025
Israeli soldiers are seen in Beit Hanoun ahead of an operation by the al-Qassam Brigades, undated (Al-Qassam Brigades Military Media)

'Israel' on blast as media exposes report discrepancies in Gaza ambush

  • Palestine
  • 8 Jul 2025
Yemen Navy sinks ETERNITY C ship, shares footage of operation

Yemen Navy sinks ETERNITY C ship, shares footage of operation

  • Politics
  • 9 Jul 2025

Coverage

All
The Ummah's Martyrs

Read Next

All
The Freedom Flotilla ship Handala as it departs for Gaza, where it aims to break the maritime blockade at a port in Syracuse, Sicily in southern Italy on July 13, 2025. (AFP)
Palestine

Freedom Flotilla's Handala departs Sicily in bid to break Gaza siege

The container ship CMA CGM Laperouse, left, docks at the Georgia Ports Authority's Port of Savannah, Sept. 29, 2021, in Savannah, Ga (AP)
Politics

US shipbuilding woes deepen as tariffs, outdated policies backfire

Gaza war raises ethical questions for ex-Obama, Biden officials
Politics

Mercenary firm tied to Gaza war crimes hires Obama-Biden PR operatives

'Israel' targets children in Gaza collecting water
Palestine

'Israel' strikes Gaza kids fetching water, blames it on 'malfunction'

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS